What Comes After 3L? Launching a Career in International Human Rights

Navigating a career in international human rights may be daunting, particularly during the first few years after law school. Join Wasserstein Fellow Niku Jafarnia ’20, as she describes the path she took to build a career in international human rights while a student at HLS and immediately following graduation. Niku will discuss working as a post-graduate fellow with a Yemeni human rights organization, making the jump from fellowship to a staff position, considerations for living/working abroad, and how to build a skillset (and mindset!) that will ready you for this challenging but rewarding practice area.

Lunch provided. Please RSVP below!

Niku Jafarnia is the Yemen and Bahrain researcher at Human Rights Watch, where she investigates human rights abuses and violations of international law in both countries, including alleged war crimes, violations of social and economic rights, and cases of arbitrary detention and enforced disappearance. Currently, she is also investigating the destruction of water resources in Gaza. Immediately after finishing her law degree, she worked for Mwatana for Human Rights, a Yemeni civil society organization, on a Satter fellowship. At Mwatana, Niku investigated war crimes in Yemen and led research regarding the use of starvation as a method of warfare. Niku then worked with the Center for Civilians in Conflict (CIVIC), where she led research on civilian protection in Syria, Iraq, Yemen, and Libya, including research focused on the intersections of climate change, environmental destruction, and drivers of armed conflict. Niku graduated from Harvard Law School and Harvard Kennedy School (class of 2020) with a J.D.-M.P.P. She received her B.A. from the University of California, Berkeley.

If you or an event participant requires disability-related accommodations, please contact HLS Accessibility Services at accessibility@law.harvard.edu two weeks in advance of the event.